Defense Acquisition

This is an unclassified summary of a recent classified GAO report on oversight policies and practices at Defense Department (DOD) special access acquisition programs. These programs--also known as "black programs"--are highly secret projects with tightly controlled access and stringent security measures beyond those of standard classified programs. Beginning in the mid-1980s, Congress repeatedly voiced concerns about the growing number of special access programs and the Pentagon's refusal to provide information Congress needed to effectively oversee these programs. In a 1989 report, GAO noted a trend toward increased oversight and centralization of oversight of special access programs within DOD--a trend that continues today. As a result of congressional and other external pressures, DOD has taken additional steps to bolster and centralize oversight of special access programs. The DOD Inspector General and the military services' audit agencies and inspectors general have also increased their oversight of these programs.

GAO found that: (1) DOD properly established its SAAP, but often did not strictly comply with DOD acquisition regulations since the regulations' applicability to SAAP was unclear; (2) DOD did not monitor SAAP as well as it did non-special access programs, particularly when it concerned weak internal controls in contracting and technological matters, internal communication, and record-keeping; (3) DOD followed the same resource justification, execution, and review processes for SAAP as for non-special programs, although it disguised funding for SAAP in unclassified budget documents for security reasons; (4) cost increases, scheduling delays, and performance problems were similar in both types of programs; (5) DOD has strengthened and centralized SAAP oversight; and (6) Congress has increased its oversight of SAAP, and DOD has provided adequate information to Congress.